


Less than Perfect

by Sanguied



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Aftermath of Violence, M/M, Mild Language
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-13
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2017-12-29 08:13:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,819
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1003059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanguied/pseuds/Sanguied
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for a 3 hour challenge.<br/>Harry knew Malfoy was going to go off. It wasn’t a matter of if, but when.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Harry knew Malfoy was going to go off. It wasn’t a matter of if, but when. Someone like Draco Malfoy couldn’t suffer under the whispers, taunts, and the bulling in silence. Harry could see the strain Malfoy went through trying to ignore them, to avoid them, and to not give them cause.

Harry tried to run interference, Ron and Hermione followed his lead and didn’t attack Malfoy. He’d tried talking to his house, Ron and Hermione silent but standing beside him, however none of them took it seriously. The only person he’d seen actually trying to stop the abuse was Neville. While Ron and Hermione had been silence, Neville had spoken up, which Harry appreciated, even if it hadn’t really done anything to stop the rest of the school.

Even the Slytherins had thrown Draco out as a sacrifice, they didn’t taunt him, but they did ignore him. They didn’t speak to him or help him out. They distanced themselves as if they’d had nothing to do with the Death Eaters or their beliefs. As if, by distance, they could remove the stains upon their own names even the ones with parents in Azkaban.

When it finally happened Harry had been looking at his pie and wondering why he’d come back to Hogwarts at all. He jerked his head up at the loud laughter to see the reason he’d returned picking himself off the floor, next to him Ron bit off a chuckle.

Harry made to stand, but Draco was already on his feet, and Hermione grabbed his arm, “he’s fine Harry, don’t bring any more attention to it.”

Draco leaned down to grab the last bit of his papers when someone sent an incendio, burning the papers to ash before he could grab them. Draco growled and stood, “Fuck it, I’m done.” He threw down his bag and the room watched with bated breath as he stormed the doors and left the Great Hall.

Harry watched him go with lead in his stomach. He made to stand and threw off Hermione’s hand, when she reached for him again. The lead turned to molten lava when someone began to clap and then everyone was clapping and laughing and Harry knew this was where he lost it too.

Several students went towards the door, ‘to finish the job’. He threw up his hand as he stood, and the doors responded by slamming shut, stopping anyone from following Malfoy. He stood on the bench and then the table and said, “shut the fuck up.” He didn’t yell but he might as well had as the room went dead silent.

“Mr. Potter,” Headmistress McGonagall stood and called to him, shock in her voice.

He looked at her and whatever was on his face pushed her back into her seat.

“Harry?” Hermione stood from the table, Ron clumsily followed, and he looked down at them, his steady companions.

“Sit down and listen to me, because I’m not releasing the doors until I’ve had my say.” He crossed his arms.

Hermione opened her month and he pointed to the bench. She sighed but humored him and Ron followed her lead, looking bewildered with the whole thing.

Harry clapped his hands, “So, by a show of hands, how many of you have heard and watched your mother beg and plead for your life? Actually had to listen to her begging for you, crying, come on, anyone?” His voice was at once without feeling and yet so broken it hurt to hear it.

“Harry,”

He looked down to Hermione’s pale face. “What are you doing? You don’t have to,”

Ron grabbed her hand and looked up at him with a pain-filled expression, “Harry, mate, we all know what you hear around Dementors.”

Harry smiled down at him, “I wasn’t talking about me. Malfoy has also had the privilege.”

Ron pulled Hermione closer, as pale as his girlfriend, who said, “no,” with a horror filled voice.

Harry looked away from her and then back to the room at large, “no one then, all right that’s just us.” Harry looked around and tried to catch the eyes of students who’d lost parents in the war and kindly softly asked, “is there anyone here who wouldn’t do anything to save their parents?” He looked to Hermione last, the girl who had erased herself from her parent’s minds to save them.

“Okay then, let’s try this, who here has learned Occlumency by being mind-raped by Snape and Bellatrix until you can stop them? Having to work 24 hours a day to keep Dumbledore and Voldemort out of your head, because they try to sneak into every single fucking thought you have.” He rubbed the side of head, “they’re all dead and my head still hurts,” he chuckled. He looked around at the horrified faces, some shaking their heads and looking to their friends. “Oh come on that can’t be just me and Malfoy again, can it?” He looked around but no raised a hand or even met his eyes, “Well just us again then.”

“Harry stop,” Hermione whispered.

Harry shook his head, “No, here, let’s see,” Harry pretended to think.

“He took the mark.”

Harry looked to Seamus, “I imagine you would have too, had you had his family or been given as many potions as Malfoy had, and then held down by your own father, while Greyback held your mother in his arms.”

Seamus scowled through he looked sick, “you don’t know that.”

Harry smiled sickly and tapped his head, “Oh but I do, Tom thought I’d enjoy his screams.”

Seamus swallowed thickly and rubbed a hand over his mouth as he mumbled, “Oh my god.”

People were really squirming now and several looked downright queasy.

Harry looked towards McGonagall as she stood again, “Harry, I think we,”

He actually growled at her, “You owe me this and you’ll let me have it.”

She paled and dropped into her seat with a startled nod.

“He let Death Eater’s into the school!”

He didn’t even identify who had called out, just that the whispers of agreement moved quickly around the room, but even they puttered off into shock when Harry laughed. He laughed even as he said, “do you honestly think that Dumbledore didn’t know? Really? The man knew when you farted and you think he didn’t know Malfoy was working on the fucking cabinet?” Harry straightened and said in an eerie reminder of Dumbledore, “sometimes young Mr. Potter awful things have to happen and we have to let them so the next stage may occur.” Harry scowled.

“No, he couldn’t have known,” someone exclaimed and several variances called out the same.

Harry shrugged, “believe me or not, but he knew and _he let it happen_. What are you supposed to do when every adult around you is using you and you can’t trust a single one of them? Anyone here had that woe?” He looked around briefly but most students seemed too shocked to even try, Harry rolled his shoulders, “so me and Malfoy again, becoming a theme here.”

“He nearly killed Katie and he used imperius on Rosmerta.” Harry nodded to Anthony, rather like he was thanking the boy for mentioning it. 

“He also left Poppy the remedy for the necklace’s poison and since he’d been ordered to kill Rosmerta the fact that he didn’t, nor had her commit any serious crimes says something, doesn’t it?” Harry answered with narrowed eyes and, having no response, Anthony looked away. “Malfoy held someone under the imperius for a whole year and yet never used that power on any of you.”

“He was Voldemort’s torturer, the papers all said so.”

Harry would recognize that prick Smith’s voice anywhere. He clasped his hands behind his back, “I have been told that not even most adults can cast a strong cruciatus or imperius. I’ve also been told that the cruciatus was taught and used here while I was gone, largely to lackluster results. Most students were unable to create the curse and those who did were very weak, of which you should all be proud.” He looked around the room, “Bellatrix once told me you have to mean to cause pain, but she wasn’t quite right.” Harry eyes took a faraway glazed look, “sometimes all you have to do is fear the outcome more if you don’t. Sometimes you have to do horrible things because the alternative is even worse.”

Harry shook his head, and offered a smile that was worse than the previous. “I’m told that both Malfoy and I are very talented with both pieces of dark magic. The first time I used the cruciatus, Mad-Eye Moody said I was a good boy and gave me chocolate frog,” he looked up, trying to pull back from the memory, “he was so impressed because the man had broken over a hundred of his own bones while trying to get away from me.” Harry smirked, “they said I had to teach them to fear me, isn’t that right Headmistress?”

McGonagall dabbed at her face discreetly and took a couple of deep breaths, “You know I never agreed with what you were asked to do. You or Mr. Malfoy, you were both horribly mistreated.”

“Horribly mistreated,” he smiled with sickening delight, “huh, that must be the reason we can’t sleep and have some lovely addictions to potions going on.”

Hermione gasped and reached up to him. “Please Harry no more,”

Harry stepped back from her, “We’ve both made some shit decisions Malfoy and I, but we had less choice than any of you want to believe. I had as much of a choice to kill that bastard as Malfoy had to serve him, which was less than none. It’s easy to blame him, but unless you were in his shoes, fuck off. You have no idea what he _was_ going through or what he _is_ going through.”

Harry avoided Hermione’s hands and jumped off the table, Hermione and Ron started to get up but Harry waved them off. He looked around the room noting how people wouldn’t meet his eyes and how pale and horrified they looked. At the door he shook his head, “I can’t believe I fucking died for you people.” He slipped through the door.

Ginny jumped up from her seat shocked and worried. Hell she’d be as friendly with Malfoy as Harry wanted as long as he never looked like that again. She moved towards the door as Hermione and Ron joined her, half their house and then the school followed.

Next to Ginny, Hermione shook her head, “Damn-it, why didn’t I just help him protect Malfoy.”

“He doesn’t ask for shit, all he wanted was that arse, should of just,” Ron pushed against the door, which wouldn’t give. He hit it with his palm, “Fuck,” he recognized Harry’s door lock charm, “we’ll be here for at least ten minutes.”

Hermione pulled her wand, “maybe less, if we work together.”

Harry didn’t know where Draco had gone to, he had a 20 minute start, but McGonagall was in the Great Hall so he couldn’t have used her floo. He patted his pockets for the map, he had it somewhere.

“I heard you,” Harry spun around to see Draco.

“Thank Merlin. I thought I had missed you.” He looked the other boy over. Malfoy looked okay, beyond some dark circles under his eyes.

“I don’t understand, why did you defend me?” Draco didn’t sound angry just defeated and Harry hated the lack of fire.

Harry rubbed his face and cringed at the heat he could feel rising on his cheeks, “you heard me, we have a lot in common and I hate how they treat you.”

“I can’t stay,” Draco bit his lip and looked towards the Great Hall, “I just can’t. I’m done with the lot of them.”

“Then come with me.” Harry held out his hand. Draco looked down at his hand for the longest moment of Harry’s life, completely aware of what he was offering. Finally Draco took his hand and Harry clutched it tightly.

“Where will we go?” Draco asked, “my mother is under house arrest and my father is in Azkaban and your place is surrounded by the press.”

“Trust me, Malfoy-Draco, please?”

Draco nodded, “All right Potter,” Harry raised an eyebrow to which Draco rolled his, “fine Harry, I trust you.”

“Good,” he smiled, “they’re not here anymore to control us. We can do or be anything we actually want, so what’s your wildest dream Draco?”

Draco smiled a real smile, lacking everything but joy, “I don’t know. I didn’t plan on living through it.”

“Me either, so let’s find out.” Harry pulled on Draco’s hand, starting the boy to run a long side him.

Even with near about the whole Great Hall trying it still took them about 7 minutes to get the doors open. Ron called out as the students spread out, “Now remember if you find Malfoy, for the love of Merlin, don’t attack him or I’ll hex your ass.”

People scattered, Headmistress McGonagall being one of the last to leave the Great Hall. She thoughtfully watched her students scatter and sadly closed the doors before she made her way to her office, where she was found an hour later by Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. The portraits had already told her what the students were tripping over each other to say. Harry’s things were gone, yes, she knew, the elves had also taken Malfoy’s. The portraits also told her the boys had left the castle. Hermione wanted to go Grimmauld place and since they were 8th years, and because she knew they wouldn’t believe her when she told them Harry hadn’t gone there, she let them go check. She sent Ginny back to her common room. Several minutes after they’d left they re-graced her fireplace and told her what she’d already had known.

McGonagall allowed them to brain storm in her office before giving them enough platitudes to get them to go back to their common room. She told them she’d contact Kingsley and anyone else she could think of and she would, but the fact was if Harry and Draco didn’t want to be found, well. They were rich and magically powerful enough not to be found and large part of her thought they deserved to be free.

All of her contacts answered their floo save Mrs. Tonks. So instead of leaving a message she left some files and then reconnected with the Ministry.

HPHPHP

“Principal McKay-Miller, your 2 o’clock is here.” Jeannie stood and quickly ran an eye over herself. She wanted to make a good first impression. From what she’d already heard this woman was old-old Euro-money and willing to make large donations to the school she chose. She wasn’t going to let Sharpe beat her out. She quickly tapped her phone, “send them in.” She waved her wand towards the door, which opened at her command, even as she moved to the front of her desk to greet them.

The woman entered and one look was all Jeannie needed to know that the old-old Euro-money was no false rumor. They didn’t prescribe to the old fashioned robes here in Canada, everyone having long ago adapted to muggle clothes. So it stood to reason that, though genteel and graceful, the woman seemed a touch awkward in her designer suit. She was beautiful and her red hair was styled into a lovely French twist. Jeannie would have called it a cold beauty if not for her warm smile.

They shook hands as Ms. Black said, “I’d like you to meet my son, Severus.”

Jeannie looked to the boy with the dark blonde hair and silver eyes. She could already see the girls going absolutely out of their minds, the boy was gorgeous. He had also adapted better than his mother to the muggle styles, already wearing designer casual with an easy air.

“A pleasure to meet you Severus.”

He smiled at her and she mentally upped the number of hexes girls were going to cast to get this one’s attention.

“And this is Sirius Lupin, my step-grandson from my son-in-law’s first marriage.” Jeannie looked to the other boy and realized Severus had brought his only real competition for the girls with him. Sirius was stunning. He had light brown hair styled into a relaxed mess, sunglasses perched among the strands and his large jade eyes were amazing. The senior boys were going to hate her for letting these two through the doors. She glanced down to the baby carriage and saw Ms. Black’s youngest charge fast asleep, as she looked up to address Sirius’ greeting, she noticed the boy’s intertwined fingers and grinned.

She could hear hearts breaking already. “Well boys ready for the tour?”

The End

There may be an epilogue to this, if anyone actually wants to read one of when they return to England, but otherwise complete.


	2. Epilogue

Thank you for asking Nely.

Epilogue: 

Teddy was over the moon when he got his Hogwart’s letter. 

He really wanted to go. It was where his parents had gone. It was also where his older brothers had gone. Well they weren’t really his older brothers, but he’d always thought of them as his older brothers, even after their marriage. Severus and Sirius weren’t really their names either but that’s all he’d ever called them. 

When Teddy had been little, there had been healers, spells, and secrets all around Severus and Sirius. He remembered the healers, ones for the mind and for the body, arriving and speaking with his brothers behind closed doors. He remembered watching his grandmother perform nightly silencing charms on the door of their room. And he remembered the one time she’d forgotten and the screams that had shaken the house. 

Teddy hadn’t really understood the secrecy until his 1st homework assignment on the ‘Hero of the World and the Youngest Death Eater’. Then he’d understood why they hid. If anything their infamy had only grown since their disappearance. Girls in his class went ga-ga over who was hotter the hero or the bad boy. The hype and attention given to the idea of them was ridiculous. The merchandising was insane. Someone somewhere was making a lot of money off his brothers. 

The only things Teddy had ever purchased were a couple of trading cards, one for Harry Potter and one for Draco Malfoy (they were easy to hide). He had studied the cards but could see very little of his brothers in the images. Maybe it was the changed hair colors or the missing sunglasses, which his brothers always wore out. Though Teddy thought it was mostly because Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy looked sad and larger than life, while Sev and Siri were his happy and goofy brothers. 

From what Teddy figured, they had finished their last year of school before the idea of them had spread. Teddy was glad. Neither liked to read anything about themselves and now there were whole classes dedicated to figuring them out. 

After they graduated, they had taken to traveling and while Teddy missed them, he loved the weird stuff they sent him. They also showed up for every holiday and his birthday, which meant they’d be here by dinner. 

Siri and Sev didn’t talk about their past and they had never mentioned going back to Britain. Hence, as much as he wanted to go Hogwarts, he would never hurt them as so many had. So Teddy put the letter aside, resigning himself to attending another school. 

HPHPHP

“So Teddy got something to tell us?” Siri asked him shortly after they’d finished the cake and ice cream.

Teddy looked up from his shrunken head, awesome gift. He was so going to Africa one day. “Huh,” he looked between his brothers, “what do you mean?” He’d thought he’d told them everything already. 

Siri brushed back his mess of light brown hair and smiled kindly. “About a school maybe?” Siri looked to Sev, sitting next to him, and still picking at his cake.  
Teddy looked to Sev too, as Siri tended to dance around topics, but Sev always just said what they wanted. Teddy liked that about Sev. 

“Hogwarts Teddy, we know you got the letter and we want to know, do you want to go?” Sev smiled to soften the hard question. 

Well he almost always liked Sev’s direct nature. “Um,” he looked between them, unsure what to say.

Siri nudged his foot with his own. “It won’t bother us if you choose to go. We won’t be angry.”

Teddy twisted in his seat, anxious and a little mad at his grandmother for telling them. He wanted to be loyal to them. He wanted to forsake the place that had caused them both so much pain. Yet he’d heard so many very cool things about Hogwarts. His parents had gone there. He kicked the legs under his chair. “It was probably a mistake. None of my friends got a letter. It’s only supposed to be for kids in Britain.”

Siri shook his head earnest and thoughtful, “It wasn’t a mistake.”

Sev shook his head with a smirk, “It certainly wasn’t. You’d gotten that letter if you lived in Antarctica, but that’s not the question here, is it?”

Teddy shook his head, looking between his brothers. He owed it to them to be honest. “I want to go, but,”

“It won’t hurt us,” Siri offered, “and if you’re worried we’d be upset or angry don’t be, we’re okay.”

But Teddy remembered when they hadn’t been okay. He remembered the healers and the charms and the pain. 

Sev reached across the table and squeezed his hand. All this touching was surprising to Teddy as usually neither of his brothers were very physically affectionate. “It’s probably time we go back and settled things there anyway.”

Teddy swallowed thickly, “you’d come with me?”

Siri quickly nodded, “of course. We’ve houses there. You could visit us every holiday. Call us whenever you needed.”

“You wouldn’t have to stay there,” Teddy offered, “just, I mean you could still travel.”

“Teddy,” Siri smiled, “we need to go back.”

“We’ll be fine,” Sev reassured him. 

Neither Sev nor Siri had ever lied to him so he took them at their word and the excitement over took him. He was going to Hogwarts.

HDHDHD

Three months later and Teddy could barely contain himself. It was hard saying goodbye to all his friends. It was harder still to say goodbye to his grandmother, who had found life and a new love in Canada and didn’t want to go back, though he would still see her over the longer breaks. 

He tried to shove the last of his stuff into his truck. While Sev and Siri might have been apologetic about it, Teddy really didn’t mind going directly to the school. It might have been a mob scene if anyone recognized them anyway and this way they could plan to meet with their friends out of the spotlight. Teddy shoved and then sat on his trunk. He might need to ask Sev to help. Sev could pack anything. 

“Teddy?”

He turned, expecting to see Siri and Sev and instead, “holy shite.” Instead of Siri and Sev, his lovable brothers, standing at his door was Harry Potter and Draco Malfoy. He’d always known it was them, but woe. The changes were subtle but it changed so much. Harry was wearing the glasses, his hair was black and Teddy could see the scar he always hid. Draco’s hair was platinum blond and Teddy could see for the first time the death eater tattoo on his arm. 

Harry glanced at Draco, “Um, there’s stuff we should probably explain.”

Draco cleared his throat, “You see we’re not who you think we are.”

“We’re so sorry, we wanted,”

Teddy shook his head with smile. “You guys have no idea, do you?”

“What?” Harry asked.

They looked confused and Teddy took pity and pulled the cards from his back pocket. “You look better than you did on these. He handed Harry the Harry card and Draco his. They looked for a moment then switched cards. 

“They made cards of us? They made a card of me?” Draco asked, taking his back from Harry and studying it.

Teddy shook his head. “Cards, posters, books, movies, fan clubs, classes. You two are the most famous wizards the world over. I’ve written countless papers about the two of you and, though I was tempted, I never mentioned you both leave wet towels on the floor.” 

“You knew?” Harry asked.

Teddy nodded. “I knew and love you anyway. You’re my family no matter what names you use.”

Harry hugged him gratefully. Draco hugged him as well but whispered, “Movies? As in more than one, who played us?”

Harry shook his head, “how did we miss that?”

Teddy shrugged. “You guys were in the Outback when the big ones came out.” Teddy snorted, “I went in a group. The girls fought for weeks afterwards about which of you was hotter.”

Harry blushed while Draco grinned. “Really?”

Teddy shook his head amused and a little worried. His brothers might not be as ready as they’d thought. “I’ve got to get you on the net. You’ll freak. People have been looking for you two forever.”

Teddy thought carefully about what to show them. He steered clear of the gossip and fan pages, then immediately thought of the first thing and clicked the favorite tab. 

Harry read over his shoulder, “The Potter-Malfoy Chances Foundation.”

Teddy nodded. “It’s for kids who were orphaned or abused. There’s at least one on every populated continent.”

Harry blinked, “wow, that’s,”

Draco didn’t say anything but he traced his name across the screen. 

“Hermione Granger-Weasley has a blog about trying to find you guys. Sometimes she writes letters to you on it, it’s seriously popular.”

“Granger writes letters to me?” Draco eyebrow rose, “really?”

Teddy nodded, “yeah. A lot of people do.”

Harry swallowed. “We didn’t know,” he was pale, “we just wanted to be free.”

“We just wanted to live a little.” Draco looked to Harry, “you figure Mother might have said something when we saw her in France.”

“Wow, you know they ask her all the time if she’s heard from you, she always says no.”

Draco smiled. “The last time was about 2 years ago.”

Harry shrugged. “We surprised her in France. We knew she’d keep her word.”

“She did.” Teddy clicked to the next site. “Here’s one of the memorials, this one is on Hogwarts’ grounds.”

He clicked the picture bigger and realized he did something wrong when Draco paled and Harry gasped. Harry stood, “why?” Draco took his arm and Harry grabbed his hand. Teddy was thankful they got a chance to see it over a pc screen rather than in life if this was their reaction. The statue was considered a symbol of the whole war. Robed figures, faceless due to their hoods, stood around the figures of Harry and Draco. Harry was kneeling, while Draco stood in front of him, wand pointed towards Harry, dangerous until you realized it was the handle of the wand and not the tip. The only colors on the whole of the white marble were the Gryffindor crest on Harry’s chest and the Slytherin crest on Draco’s. 

Teddy studied the marble. “It’s to show house unity against all odds. Hogwarts is together, against any foe.”

“Good Gods, we aren’t symbols.” Harry pulled Draco from his seat, hugging him all the tighter. “We aren’t heroes. We were so scared all the time.”  
Draco patted Harry side and whispered to him. 

Teddy hated that he’d upset them so badly. It hadn’t been his intention but he thought they should know what they were walking in to. “Here and in the states it’s not as bad as it is over there.”

“I don’t understand. I’m the bad guy, why?” Draco broke off and dropped his head onto Harry’s shoulder.

Teddy nearly chuckled and bit it off with a shake of his head. “Sev you are anything but the bad guy in this story. Bad boy, yeah, but people have made you into the icon of change. People love you. Shit Sev after the movie people got the death mark tattoo with your name through the middle in support of you.”

Draco looked like he was going to be sick. “Are you serious?”

Teddy nodded. “You’re the only person with that tat that isn’t wanted, dead, or in Azkaban. They don’t give a shit about Voldemort, they’re supporting you.”

Draco looked to Harry, “What the hell are we walking into?”

Harry shook his head and looked to Teddy with a wiry smile. “So is it too late to ask how you feel about local schools?”

Teddy was actually worried until Harry smiled. “We’ll be fine Teddy.”

“We’re a lot tougher than we look.” Draco winked.

HDHDHD

“Guys-Guys!” Neville called out, finally hushing the crowd milling around the room. He pointed out the window he stood in front of, “look.” He held his ground, not allowing himself to be shoved aside, though he made room for his wife under his arm. He wasn’t surprised to see Hermione and Pansy at the forefront. 

Hermione scanned the grounds for what Neville had called them over for. There, at the largest statue, a boy stood with his trunk. Her eyes whipped to the movement of someone coming around the statue. There they were, unmistakable it was Harry and Draco, circling the statue. Draco pointed and shook his head, while Harry’s body language screamed disgust. Harry kicked the statue with the side of his foot for good measure. 

Under Neville’s arm, Ginny snorted. “Didn’t I tell everyone that they’d hate that thing?”

Ron chuckled. “And that’s the best of the lot.”

“I want to make it plainly clear I had nothing to do with any of those movies.” Pansy threw out.

“I think your accounts would say otherwise.” Blaise chimed in. She nudged him painfully.

“Well we’re not all trampling out there. They’ll do aheader.” Ginny looked around, “Hermione?”

She nodded. 

“Me too.” Ron announced. 

Hermione patted his chest and shook her head. “We need calm and understanding.”

“I can be calm and understanding.”

Ginny sighed, “You can’t even say the words with them. You stay. Nev?”

Neville didn’t look away from the window. “Yeah, alright. Let’s go Hermione.”

They walked from castle together, “not so fast,” Neville admonished, “we want them to see us coming.”

Hermione nodded. “It’s just been so long.”

Harry pointed them out and Hermione appreciated not having to run after them. As they approached she couldn’t help but study them, it was amazing. 11 years had done Neville nothing but good and she herself wasn’t half bad for being a mother of two, but this. It was like they hadn’t aged a day, like they’d just run from the hall. She yearned to ask, but didn’t dare. She’d never hear the end of it if she badgered them with questions and so had already told herself not to ask any. It was enough that Harry was here, alive and healthy. “Harry,” She smiled and reached out with her arms, which thankfully didn’t remain empty. She hugged him tightly. 

“Longbottom.” Draco nodded.

“Draco.” Neville smiled. “You look good.”

Draco raised an eyebrow but he smiled and it wasn’t a sneer or smirk. He looked over Neville level of fitness. “So do you.”

Neville blushed with a pleased grin, “Mostly the work of my wife.”

Draco smiled, “Of course.”

Neville could help but ask. “It doesn’t seem like either of you have aged a day.” Neville thought they looked even younger without the whole world on their shoulders.

Draco shrugged and waved a hand. “Australian native magic is so different. Don’t even ask; just know Harry got the blessing of a whole other nation, per usual.” Draco grinned towards Harry.

Neville didn’t think he’d even seen Draco grin like that carefree and young. He thought he might now see why Harry was so taken with him. Then he chuckled as Hermione let Harry go and threw herself into hugging Draco, who seemed pleased but unsure how to act, rather like an owl getting its feather’s ruffled. Neville grinned at Harry. 

“So you two drew the short straw to meet us?” 

Neville snorted as he hugged Harry tightly. “Rather like we were the first out and threw up a locking charm behind us. Ginny will put me on the couch for a week.”

“Ginny?” Harry grinned and hugged him tighter. “You and Gin. Brilliant mate!”

“Not so brilliant to hear our kids tell it.”

Harry raised an eyebrow.

Neville snorted. “We’re parents hence gross.”

Harry laughed, both at the thought and the idea that Ginny and Neville were parents. “I wouldn’t know. Teddy is as close as we get to kids.” Harry gestured over to Teddy, who was standing next to Draco, talking to Hermione and trying not to look star struck. 

Neville grinned. “Boy, look at him, the spitting image of his mom.”

“Especially when he trips,” Harry grinned. “He’s a great kid.”

“Of that I have no doubt.” Neville smiled as they wandered towards the trio.

Teddy couldn’t believe he was talking to Hermione, the Hermione Granger and she was so nice. She’d even hugged him. All the girls he’d went to school wanted to be just like her, smart and brave. People from all over the world read her blog. 

Then Neville Longbottom came over and gave Teddy a hug and it was everything he could do not to shout or do a happy dance. Teddy had had a poster of Longbottom in his room, brandishing his wand. Everyone knew Longbottom had led the Hogwarts rebellion and had killed Vortemort’s snake. He’d never thought to have this opportunity much less to be hugged and treated so warmly.

Teddy did notice that every few seconds both Hermione and Neville would glance over as if to make sure Draco and Harry were still there.

Finally Hermione announced, “Ready to meet the masses?”

Draco’s eyebrow rose and Harry’s eyes widened. “Masses?”

Hermione grinned. “Yes, but they’re masses you know. Draco, Pansy and Blaise are here. They are so sorry they weren’t here that last year. They’re dying to make it up to you.” At their looks she added, “we got close after graduation, when Blaise dated Luna.”

“Blaise’s dating Luna?” Draco boggled.

Hermione shook her head. “No, they did date, they broke it off. Actually,” she blushed, “I’ve been seeing a lot of Blaise since my divorce from Ron.”

“You’re divorced?” Harry asked.

Hermione sighed. “You haven’t seen any of the blogs or writings at all, have you? Figures.”

Harry shrugged with a grin and took Draco’s hand. "Let's go meet the masses." 

The End.


End file.
